The Exciting Change The Walking Dead TV Show Might Make With Villains The Whisperers

Some spoilers below for the Walking Dead comic book series, which won't necessarily get adapted for TV note for note.

When The Walking Dead returns for Season 7, one new villain will hold all the glory while Rick & Co. are traumatized by the brutal bludgeoning of their fellow survivor. (Head here to get a rundown on who it'll probably be.) But as readers of the comics know, the troubles don't begin or end with Negan, and other threats lie ahead, namely The Whisperers. While they're likely a long way from their live-action debut, Robert Kirkman dropped a tease that could lead to a giant connection to companion series Fear the Walking Dead. Here's what he said when asked about where the flesh-wearing came from.

I feel like it's something that probably evolved over time. Maybe they were putting blood all over their faces and were walking around in Mexico and went, 'Oh, it would probably be better if we just used skin.'

For anyone who hasn't been watching Fear the Walking Dead this season, Nick has made a normal habit of smearing zombie blood and viscera all over himself to walk around freely among the dead, and it's something that other characters are also doing. What Robert Kirkman is hinting at there is that perhaps the origin story of The Whisperers on The Walking Dead is tied to Nick and the other Mexican survivors around him. Or, at the very least, someone in connection to someone involved with Nick around this point in Fear the Walking Dead.

This would be a pretty solid explanation for The Whisperers for two reasons. One, it would give The Walking Dead an easy and believable way to make a crossover scenario happen with its follow-up series, and there's a mostly believable amount of time that passes to make up for the distance that would need to be traveled. And two, it would rebut some of the complaints aimed at Fear the Walking Dead in its later episodes for using the "cover myself in blood" trick too often, since that tactic would need to get used often enough to justify it become an entirely new way of life. One has to appreciate and/or walkers to be a Whisperer, and that's definitely a trait Nick has shown in the past.

On the flip side, this is Robert Kirkman we're talking about. He's known for going big on jokes and misdirects, and it's not always clear when he's kidding about something, since he's been fielding a lot of the same questions for many years. He was definitely having a laugh at the expense of Andrew Lincoln's speaking talents during the panel at the New York Comic Con (via ComicBook.com) when discussing if the currently ongoing Whisperer War will make it to TV.

Probably, eventually. As long as we don't get cancelled it should. I can't wait to see Andrew Lincoln saying 'Now we gotta worry about the Whispererererers.'

It would be Coral-gate all over again. And it would be fabulous. Kirkman also noted that they may end up changing The Whisperers' name for the show, so maybe he'll pick something even harder for Andrew Lincoln to pronounce.

The Walking Dead will make its long-awaited Season 7 debut on AMC on Sunday, October 23, at 9:00 p.m. ET. We won't whisper to you a list of all the shows left to premiere in 2016, but you can find them all in our fall TV schedule.